Speaker: Jason E. Sanabia ’96, Ph.D., President & CEO Raith USA, Inc.

Title The Roles of High and Low Energy Electrons in Nanofabrication

Abstract In his 1959 speech entitled There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom, Richard Feynman asked “Why cannot we write the entire 24 volumes the Encyclopedia Brittanica on the head of a pin?” After explaining how it was possible, Richard Feynman next asked “How do we write it?” and then hypothesized “We can reverse the lenses of the electron microscope.” Toward the end of his speech, Richard Feynman offered a price of $1,000 to “the first guy who can take the information on the page of a book, and put it on an area 1/25,000 smaller in linear scale, in such manner that it can be read by an electron microscope.” In 1985, Richard Feynman mailed a check for $1000 to Tom Newman, then a graduate student in R. Fabian W. Pease’s group at Stanford University, who used electron beam lithography to write the opening page of Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities at a scale of nanometers.

Today, 50 years since Richard Feynman launched the field of nanotechnology, electron beam lithography is a critical facility for the world’s research in nanotechnology. Device physics research (graphene and spintronics), materials science (bit patterned media), electrical engineering (transistors), mechanical engineering (nanoelectromechanical systems, NEMS), optical engineering (waveguides and photonic structures), and biophysics (single molecule detection) are examples of today’s active fields of research that benefit from electron beam lithography facilities. But why cannot electron beam lithography do everything? Why is it difficult to control matter below 10 nm with electron beam lithography? What prevents the manufacture of computer chips using electron beam lithography? I will introduce the basic concepts of electron beam lithography, with particular emphasis on the roles of the high and low energy electrons. Within this framework, I will discuss today’s challenges that limit the application of electron beam lithography.

Joint colloquium with Chemistry Department

As always, the colloquium will be at 12:40 in Room N304, with pizza and soda available at 12:20 for those attending the talk. For details of future colloquia, see the Winter 2011 colloquium schedule.

Speaker: Prof. Chad Orzel, Union

Title: “Talking to My Dog About Science: Why Public Communication Matters, and How Social Media Can Help”

Abstract:: At a time when the primary challenges facing the world are scientific in nature– pandemic disease, global climate change, green energy and technology– it is more important than ever that the general public have some understanding of and appreciation for science. At the same time, polls show that public understanding of science lags far behind the necessary level, and well-funded media operations attempting to sow doubt about issues like climate change have had a major negative impact. In this talk, I will discuss some of the problems with communicating science to the general public, and discuss the new opportunities for public communication afforded by Internet technologies.

As always, the colloquium will be at 12:40 in Room N304, with pizza and soda available at 12:20 for those attending the talk. For details of future colloquia, see the Winter 2011 colloquium schedule.

Speaker: Jason Slaunwhite ’04, CERN

Title: Exploring the Standard Model at the Large Hadron Collider

Abstract: The Large Hardron Collider (LHC) is one of the world’s largest scientific experiments. It aspires to answer some of the most exciting questions in particle physics today. In this talk, I will discuss the current model of particle physics and describe some of the outstanding questions. I will explain how we use the LHC answer these questions and highlight some recent results.

As always, the colloquium will be at 12:40 in Room N304, with pizza and soda available at 12:20 for those attending the talk. For details of future colloquia, see the Winter 2011 colloquium schedule.

Speaker:Dr. William Ostendorff, Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Title: Principles of Physics for Nuclear Power

As always, the colloquium will be at 12:40 in Room N304, with pizza and soda available at 12:20 for those attending the talk. For details of future colloquia, see the Fall 2010 colloquium schedule.

Speaker: Prof. John Cummings, Siena College

Title: Neutrino Physics and The Dayabay Experiment

Abstract: There has been a resurgence in interest in neutrino physics in the last 10 years. The observations of the Super-Kamiokande Experiment in 1998 indicated the “oscillation” of one flavor neutrino into another. Several experiments, now running or soon to begin, are attempting to map out the details of the neutrino mixing responsible for this oscillation phenomena. I will present a (brief) history of our understanding of the neutrino, and describe the phenomena of neutrino oscillations and what we can learn from them. Finally, I’ll describe the Dayabay experiment and it’s goals.

As always, the colloquium will be at 12:40 in Room N304, with pizza and soda available at 12:20 for those attending the talk. For details of future colloquia, see the Fall 2010 colloquium schedule.

Speaker: Prof. Charles Freeman, SUNY Geneseo

Title: The Physics of Baseball

Abstract: Baseball is a particularly interesting game for a physicist to study. What makes a curve ball curve? How much farther does the ball really travel at Coors Field in Denver than at Citi Field in New York? Why do left handed pitchers have more success against left handed batters (and right handed pitchers have more success against right handed batters)? What is the difference between a two-seam and a four-seam fastball? How do you throw a split-fingered fastball, anyway? An ex-pitcher and current physicist sheds some light on these questions and discusses some other interesting physics at work in our national pastime. Feel free to bring your glove — you just might catch a souvenir.

As always, the colloquium will be at 12:40 in Room N304, with pizza and soda available at 12:20 for those attending the talk. For details of future colloquia, see the Fall 2010 colloquium schedule.

Speaker: Prof. Rebecca Surman

Title: Astrophysical Alchemy: Creating the Heaviest Elements Within the Galaxy’s Biggest Explosions

Abstract: While the origins of the light (hydrogen, helium) and intermediate mass (carbon through iron) elements found in our solar system are well understood, we still don’t know where roughly half of the elements heavier than iron were made. From the solar system abundance pattern of these nuclei, we can tell they were synthesized in conditions of high temperature and free neutron density. However, where these extreme conditions are found astrophysically is still uncertain. Here we will discuss aspects of heavy element synthesis in two potential astrophysical sites: the neutrino-driven wind of core-collapse supernovae and hot outflows from compact object mergers.

As always, the colloquium will be at 12:40 in Room N304, with pizza and soda available at 12:20 for those attending the talk. For details of future colloquia, see the Fall 2010 colloquium schedule.

Speaker: Petros Thomas

Title: Carbonaceous Contamination on Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography Mirrors Due to Different Wavelengths of Light

Abstract: Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography (EUVL) is one the leading candidates as the next generation of lithographic technology for the semiconductor industry. One of the challenges of EUVL is the carbonaceous contamination of the multilayer EUV mirrors in the tool which reduces the reflectivity of the mirrors in the desired wavelength range. Carbonaceous contamination on optical surfaces due to light in hydrocarbon environment is a major problem in different applications such as synchrotron beam lines, astronomy telescopes, and recently in EUV lithography. Although the problem has been around for a long time, the basic mechanism of the contamination is still not fully understood. The contamination is localized to the region of the surface exposed to light in the presence of hydrocarbons. The hydrocarbons dissociate and leave carbonaceous film in the exposed region of the surface. Whether the dissociation of the hydrocarbons is caused by the incoming photons of the light or secondary electrons from the surface is not well known.

Using a Xe-plasma source which emits not only the desired wavelength near 13.5 nm (EUV light) but a wide range of out-of-band (OOB) wavelengths extending as far as the visible region, we studied the carbonaceous contamination rates of different wavelength regions. We have measured the wavelength dependence of carbon contamination on a Ru-capped mirror. These results are compared to contamination rates on TiO₂ and ZrO₂ capping layers.

Speaker: Petros Thomas

Title: Carbonaceous Contamination on Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography Mirrors Due to Different Wavelengths of Light

Abstract: Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography (EUVL) is one the leading candidates as the next generation of lithographic technology for the semiconductor industry. One of the challenges of EUVL is the carbonaceous contamination of the multilayer EUV mirrors in the tool which reduces the reflectivity of the mirrors in the desired wavelength range. Carbonaceous contamination on optical surfaces due to light in hydrocarbon environment is a major problem in different applications such as synchrotron beam lines, astronomy telescopes, and recently in EUV lithography. Although the problem has been around for a long time, the basic mechanism of the contamination is still not fully understood. The contamination is localized to the region of the surface exposed to light in the presence of hydrocarbons. The hydrocarbons dissociate and leave carbonaceous film in the exposed region of the surface. Whether the dissociation of the hydrocarbons is caused by the incoming photons of the light or secondary electrons from the surface is not well known.

Using a Xe-plasma source which emits not only the desired wavelength near 13.5 nm (EUV light) but a wide range of out-of-band (OOB) wavelengths extending as far as the visible region, we studied the carbonaceous contamination rates of different wavelength regions. We have measured the wavelength dependence of carbon contamination on a Ru-capped mirror. These results are compared to contamination rates on TiO₂ and ZrO₂ capping layers.